Who Would Have Thought
by LuvYa4ever
Summary: "Loving someone requires a leap of faith, and a soft landing is never guaranteed." -SLJ Edmund/OC
1. Home Sweet Home

**Make sure to read the authors notes at the end! It's important! :D**

* * *

**Chapter 1: Home Sweet Home**

Ding Dong!

"_Susan dear, could you please get the door? The Parkinsons must be here with their niece." Mrs. Pevensie explained as she pulled a dinner casserole out of the oven._

_Susan Pevensie, desperate to help her mother in any way she could, nodded her head eagerly and rushed to answer the front door, her younger sister, Lucy, following closely behind. _

_The Parkinsons were a young, recently married couple that had been living next to the Pevensies for the past year. They smiled warmly down at Susan and Lucy as the two little girls pulled the front door open._

"_Tom, Elizabeth! I'm so glad you could make it." Mrs. Pevensie said as she and her husband came out of the kitchen to greet their guests. "And who is this?" she asked noticing the little girl standing between the two adults. _

_She looked around Lucy's age with dark, curly brown hair and large hazel eyes; dressed in a cute red dress with white, knee high socks, and black leather shoes._

"_Go on sweetie." Mrs. Parkinson said encouragingly as the little girl hid nervously behind her uncle's leg._

_Releasing her tight grip on his pants, she glanced up at her uncle uncertainly before finally stepping out from behind him and confidently saying, "My name is Danielle Olivia Parkinson and I'm six years old."_

"_Well it's nice to meet you Danielle." Mr. Pevensie said smiling. "These are our daughters Susan and Lucy."_

"_I like your bow. It's really pretty." Lucy said pointing at the red hair piece that sat in Danielle's mass of curly hair. "Do you want to go meet my brothers?"_

"_Okay!"_

**-:|D&E|:-**

"_I take my eyes off of you children for one minute to answer the phone and a mini World War II erupts in my own backyard! Edmund Alexander Pevensie, apologize to Danielle for pushing her." Mrs. Pevensie scolded as she took the first aid kit out of the cupboards._

"_I will not! She pushed me first!"_

"_I did not!" Danielle countered trying hard not to smile._

_Lucy and her siblings glanced at each other. They had seen the whole fight. _

_Danielle had indeed pushed Edmund down first, but only after he had messed up one of her pigtails by pulling on it roughly. After getting back up Edmund had retaliated by shoving Danielle even harder and it all went downhill from there until Mrs. Pevensie arrived. _

"_Yes you did!" Edmund yelled as his mother placed a Band-Aid over a cut on Danielle's knee._

_Mrs. Pevensie sighed and glanced over at her three other children with a knowing smile. They continued to listen to Edmund and Danielle argue over who pushed whom first, amazed by how long this dispute had already lasted. Things had been like this since they met._

"_Alright you two, that's enough."_

**-:|D&E|:-**

"_Check."_

_The smooth sound of jazz music from the Glenn Miller Orchestra filled the Pevensie's living room as the five children relaxed after a long day of fun and games._

_Lucy was sitting on the rug in front of the fireplace playing with one of her dolls while Danielle sat behind her, attempting to braid Lucy's rather short hair. Susan sat nearby in an armchair reading a book while her brothers played a game of chess by the closed curtains. _

_Then, without a warning, the sound of saxophones and trombones was replaced by deafening sirens and bombs falling to the ground. It was all a blur. Mrs. Pevensie came running into the room, yelling at the children to go to the bomb shelter._

"_Come on Lucy!" Danielle yelled grabbing her friends hand and pulling her towards the backyard._

**-:|D&E|:-**

"_You need to keep this on darling, alright?" Mrs. Pevensie said as she pinned Lucy's identification card to her coat._

_The young girl nodded sadly and glanced around the train station as her mother moved over to her brother. After the previous air raid, the government had issued that all children under the age of eighteen be sent to the country where they would be safe. _

_Next to Lucy, Mrs. Parkinson was crouching in front of her niece, trying hard to fight back tears. "Now Danielle, I want you to be good girl while staying with Professor Kirke okay? Can you do that for me?"_

_Like Lucy, Danielle nodded and hugged her aunt tightly._

"_All of you should behave, especially you two." Mrs. Pevensie said pointing to Edmund and Danielle as she tried to lighten the mood. "No fighting."_

**-:|D&E|:-**

"_Gastro vascular…"_

_Lucy and Danielle sighed miserably from their spots on the windowsill, glum expressions on their faces as they stared out at the rain. They had been so excited about going outside after breakfast, but the low rumble of thunder and flash of lighting had ruined their plans and their moods._

_Now they were sitting in some musky, dark room with Susan quizzing them on words from the dictionary…_

"_Come on Peter, Gastro vascular." Susan repeated impatiently._

"_Is it Latin?" the blonde asked in a bored voice._

"_Yes."_

_Edmund emerged from under the coffee table, a smirk planted on his face. "Is it Latin for 'worst game ever invented'?"_

_Peter chuckled and Susan shot him a hard glare, slamming the large book shut. "Fine, why don't you decide what to do." she challenged._

"_We could play hide and seek." Lucy suggested timidly approaching the others._

"_But we're already having so much _fun_." Peter replied sarcastically while looking at Susan._

_She shot him another glare, looking as though she was ready to throw the dictionary at his head._

"_Come on Peter please!" Lucy begged pulling on her brother's sleeves. "Pretty please."_

_He sighed, caving into her wish like he always did. "One, two, three…"_

**-:|D&E|:-**

"_Everything from the lamp post all the way to castle Cair Paravel on the Eastern Ocean, every stick and stone you see, every icicle, is Narnia."_

"_It's an awful big wardrobe…" Lucy mumbled to herself as she stared out at the landscape before her._

"_I'm sorry, please allow me to introduce myself," the faun said. "My name is Tumnus."_

"_Please to meet you Mr. Tumnus. I'm Lucy Pevensie!"_

**-:|D&E|:-**

"_Aslan is on the move." Mr. Beaver whispered leaning in closer._

"_Who's Aslan?"_

"_Who's Aslan?" Mr. Beaver repeated laughing at Edmund. "You cheeky little bliter."_

_Mrs. Beaver hit his arm, nodding her head towards the confused children. _

"_You don't know, do ya?"_

"_Well we haven't exactly been here very long." Peter said defensively._

"_Well he's only the king of the whole woods! The top geezer! The real King of Narnia!"_

"_He's been away for a long while." Mrs. Beaver interrupted._

"_But he's just got back! And he's waiting for you at the Stone Table!"_

"_He's waiting for us?" Danielle asked furrowing her eyebrows._

"_You're blooming joking!" Mr. Beaver yelled in disbelief. "They don't even know about the prophecy!" _

"_Look," he said sighing, "Aslan's return, Tumnus' arrest, the secret police, it's all happening because of you!"_

"_You're blaming us?" Susan asked frowning._

"_No!" Mrs. Beaver said quickly. "Not blaming, thanking you!"_

"_There's a prophecy," Mr. Beaver continued, "When Adam's flesh and Adam's bone sits in Cair Paravel in throne, the evil time will be over and done!"_

"_You know that doesn't really rhyme." Susan said smartly. Danielle frowned and elbowed her slightly._

"_No, I know it don't, you're kinda missing the point!"_

_Mrs. Beaver sighed and jumped in. "It has long been foretold that two sons of Adam and three daughters of Eve will defeat the White Witch, and restore peace to Narnia."_

**-:|D&E|:-**

_The screams and howls and pounding grew louder with every passing second. Lucy was surprised that no one from the camp had heard all the commotion and come running with an army._

"_Tonight," the White Witch's voice rang out, "the deep magic will be appeased. But tomorrow, we will take Narnia forever!"_

_The crowd cheered loudly in response. The witch raised a dagger and Lucy felt her heart rate quicken. It felt like it was going to beat right out of her chest, but she couldn't take her eyes off of the scene in front of her. She continued to watch and for a second she thought she saw Aslan glance over at her._

_A scream filled the air and the White Witch's dagger went plunging down. A gasp escaped Lucy's mouth and she quickly looked away, burying her head in Susan's shoulder as the tears came._

**-:|D&E|:-**

"_Peter!"_

_Lucy ran towards her brother at full speed, wrapping her arms around him as they collided._

"_Where's Edmund?" Susan asked looking around frantically._

"_Peter! Come quick!" Danielle yelled coming out from behind some rocks. She waved urgently at them to follow and they ran after her._

_Edmund lay before them on the ground, clutching his side and breathing heavily._

"_I found him like this a few minutes ago. I didn't know what to do!" Danielle said fearfully._

"_It's alright Danielle, you found him, that's all that matters." Peter said. Susan kneeled in front of her younger brother and gently placed his head in her lap, removing his helmet. "Lucy, do you have your cordial?"_

_She nodded and quickly took the small bottle out of its pouch on her belt. She shakily pulled the stopper off and slowly tipped a drop into Edmund's mouth._

_His raspy breathing stopped immediately, but his eyes remained closed. Lucy looked up at her siblings and Danielle, tears rolling down her cheeks. It hadn't worked. She had killed her own brother! She turned towards Danielle, who was also had tears in her eyes, and hugged her._

_They had been sitting there for a few seconds in silence, when suddenly they heard a tiny cough. And then more coughs. Lucy pulled away from Danielle and looked down at Edmund. His eyes were open!_

_Peter pulled his younger brother up into a sitting position and hugged him._

"_When are you going to learn to do as you're told?"_

_Edmund smiled weakly and shrugged. The others laughed and they surrounded each other in a group hug._

_Feeling like they were being watched, Lucy glanced up to find Aslan standing near them. He turned to look at a statue next to him and opened his mouth, gently blowing on it. The stone began to melt away and the centaur frozen underneath suddenly came back to life once again._

_Taking the hint, Lucy glanced down at the cordial in her hand and stood up smiling before running off to help an injured faun that was close by._

**-:|D&E|:-**

_There must have been a hundred Narnians here, and to think, they were all here just to watch them get coroneted!_

"_You ready?" Danielle asked eagerly as she squeezed Lucy's hand._

_The sound of trumpets filled the air and the large, oak doors in front of them suddenly swung open. Inside Lucy noticed that there were fauns, elves, various animals, and many more in attendance. Immediately a pathway was made for Aslan and the children. On either side of the pathway were centaurs with their swords raised high above them in salute._

_Danielle squeezed Lucy's hand once more as the six of them walked down the pathway and towards the five marble thrones at the end of the room. They climbed the stairs of the dais and each child took their place in front of a throne. Peter stood in the middle with Susan and Edmund to his left and Danielle and Lucy to his right._

_Aslan turned to the crowd. "I give you, Queen Lucy, the Valiant."_

_Lucy smiled and looked over to see the Beavers carrying two ornate pillows with their crowns on them. Mr. Tumnus followed closely behind, smiling at Lucy as they approached her. _

_He picked up one of the silver tiaras from Mrs. Beaver's pillow and Lucy curtsied and bowed her head as he placed it on her. _

"_I give you, Queen Danielle, the Spirited." Aslan spoke as Tumnus took the second silver tiara from Mrs. Beaver. Danielle smiled shyly and curtsied, bowing her head as the tiara was placed on it._

"_I give you, King Edmund, the Just."_

_Tumnus moved to the other end of the dais and a silver crown was placed on Edmund's dark locks._

"_I give you, Queen Susan, the Gentle."_

_Tumnus took the gold tiara from Mrs. Beaver and placed it on top of Susan's bowed head._

"_And finally, I give you King Peter, the Magnificent."_

_Taking the final crown, Mr. Tumnus approached Peter and carefully put it on._

_With all of them crowned, the five children sat down and turned their attention to Aslan._

"_Once a King or Queen of Narnia, always a King or Queen, may your wisdom grace us until the stars rain down from the heavens."_

"_Long live King Peter!" The crowd began to chant. "Long live Queen Susan! Long live King Edmund! Love live Queen Danielle! Long live Queen Lucy!"_

_WHOOSH!_

Lucy blinked, breaking her gaze on the ceiling lamp above her as a train roared passed the platform. She sighed and closed her eyes, leaning her head back to rest against the brick wall behind her.

She had been thinking of Narnia again.

It wasn't that she hated Narnia, oh no, she loved it! But the idea of never returning upset her. It seemed that no matter what she did her mind always drifted back to the magical land she had discovered two years ago. She prayed the new school year would keep her busy enough to forget, even if it was only for a few hours.

Lifting her head, she glanced around at the underground train station in search of her siblings. The train that was taking them to school would be arriving soon and she didn't want any of them to be separated.

She quickly spotted her two brothers standing a few feet away, frowns creasing their faces as they spoke quietly to each other.

_They better not be arguing again… _she thought nervously. In Narnia her brothers' relationship had improved over time, they would argue less and cooperate. Back here in England though, it just wasn't the same.

Nothing was the same.

But after taking a closer look, Lucy noticed that her brothers weren't even looking at each other. They were staring at something in front of them.

She followed their gazes carefully to a small newsstand on the other side of the station where her sister, Susan, and best friend, Danielle, stood talking to some boys as they waited to purchase their items.

_What a surprise. _Lucy thought smiling to herself.

It wasn't that uncommon to see Susan surrounded by boys these days. She was used to them following her around; she was very pretty after all. It was easy for her to make conversation with the two boys with her. Danielle on the other hand looked slightly less comfortable. She was more fidgety, biting her lip anxiously and continuously brushing loose strands of curly brown hair behind her ear.

Lucy frowned, rolling her eyes as she scoffed at her friend's insecurities. She had never really understood them.

Danielle was a pretty girl. At the age of fifteen, she had a rather fair complexion with large hazel eyes and curly brown hair that fell just an inch passed her shoulders when it wasn't tied up.

And for as long as Lucy could remember, Danielle had always been her best friend.

At the age of six she had been sent to Finchley to live with her aunt and uncle after a severe car crash had killed her parents. From the first time they had met, it was obvious that she fit in perfectly with the Pevensie children, filling the two year age gap between Lucy and Edmund. It was rare to see them without her. She had been at their side through everything, even Narnia.

Now, even at her age when most girls were rather moody, she was still one of the happiest people they had ever met. Her laugh was infectious and her smiles lit up rooms. Aslan had picked the perfect title for her, the Spirited Queen.

Turning back towards her brothers, Lucy observed them carefully.

It was easy to see why Peter was annoyed. He was just being protective of his sister and friend. In his mind, any boy that spoke a word to Susan or Lucy, or even Danielle—who was another little sister to him—was bad news and needed to be scared away by him personally. He was just looking out for them.

Edmund on the other hand looked like he could care less about who Susan was talking to at the moment. His dark eyes were set on the boy that was currently talking to Danielle.

_That's strange… _Lucy thought. Edmund was the last person she would expect to be protective of Danielle in a situation like this. They hated each other! Even those who had never met them could figure it out. Both had short tempers and the slightest thing could tick them off, and usually it was because of something the other had done. Not a day went by without them arguing over something.

Edmund was probably just glaring at the boy with Susan, Lucy decided. And it seemed like he had had enough. He turned his back towards the newsstand and quietly muttered something into Peter's ear before walking off in the direction of the restrooms.

Lucy shrugged to herself and turned back to where her sister and friend were. The boys had just finished purchasing their newspapers and were waving goodbye to Susan and Danielle as they walked away. Soon they were shuffling past Lucy's bench, busy laughing at something on the front page. So busy that neither of them noticed Peter, who was now looking down at his watch, standing in front of them.

The taller of the two boys bumped his shoulder against Peter's and instead of turning to apologize he scowled and spat out a "watch where you're going."

"Excuse me?" Peter asked.

"You heard me," the scowling boy snapped. "Next time don't stand in the middle of the walkway!"

Peter raised an eyebrow and tilted his head to the side. "Maybe next time you should watch where you're going."

"What?"

"You heard me." Peter replied smugly.

"Why you-" the boy growled taking a step towards him. But before he could do anything Peter had already extended his arms to push him away.

The boy stumbled backwards and into his friend. They both looked up at Peter in shock.

"That's it." the taller boy said as he and his friend grabbed Peter's arms, throwing him to the ground.

Lucy gasped in horror and watched helplessly as the boys proceeded to kick her brother. She jumped up from her bench and ran towards the newsstand.

"Susan! Danielle!"

They looked up from their magazines and immediately noticed the crowd of school children forming around the fighting boys, the words 'Fight! Fight! Fight!' beginning to slowly fill the air.

"Oh no," Susan said nervously. "Not again."

Lucy sighed wearily, nodding her head. The three of them ran to the chanting crowd and pushed their way to the front.

Danielle watched as Peter was slammed against the wall, flinching when the boys began to knee him in the stomach. "This is starting to get a little old…" she said looking away.

These fights were becoming more and more frequent as the year went by. Peter's usual calm demeanor had faded away and had been replaced by an angry teenager. Even with his excellent grades, he was on the verge of expulsion because of his poor behavior at school.

"Edmund!" Lucy suddenly yelled as her second brother pushed past them and into the fight.

He flung himself onto the backs of one the boys and managed to knock him to the ground. They began to roll around in a jumble of flailing limbs as Peter was pushed to the ground again; his head dangerously close to the railway.

The sound of a shrill whistle broke through the chanting and everyone suddenly became a lot less interested in the fight, walking off in different directions. Two large police officers dressed in green uniforms approached them and angrily pulled the four boys apart, yelling at them to act their age.

The last of the crowd disappeared and Peter and Edmund turned away from the officers only to be met by not one but three angry faces.

Quietly they returned to Lucy's bench and grabbed their suitcases before moving to a less crowded area. The last thing they wanted was disapproving looks from the grown-ups around them.

"You're welcome." Edmund angrily mumbled as he dropped his things next to the others.

"I had it sorted." Peter replied bitterly as he stood up and walked a few feet away. He wasn't about to admit that he needed his _younger_ brother's help. Edmund's lips turned downward into a frown and his shoulders slouched with disappointment.

Peter stared blankly down at tracks below him, wishing that the train would come already. He knew what was coming next. His sisters would tire him with their endless amount of questions and he would have to explain himself to them again for what felt like the hundredth time.

And as if she had read his mind, Danielle asked the question he was waiting for. "What was it this time?"

He sighed wearily and finally turned to face his family. "He bumped me."

"So you hit him?" Lucy exclaimed in frustration. She was still shocked by what she had seen earlier and she couldn't comprehend how reckless her brother was.

"No," Peter explained running a hand through his blond hair. "After he bumped me, they tried to make me apologize. _That's _when I hit him."

"Really, is it that hard to walk away?" Susan asked in disbelief.

"I shouldn't have to!" Peter cried. "I mean, don't you ever get tired of being treated like a kid!"

"Uh, we are kids." Edmund reminded him sarcastically. Danielle frowned at his coldness and elbowed him in the arm.

"Well I wasn't always." Peter muttered quietly as he looked off to the side longingly.

They had all experienced something that no one could ever really understand. For ten years they had ruled the country of Narnia and in that time they had matured into wise, young adults, making it all the way to their early twenties. Never did they ever imagine that someday they might leave. But one simple hunting trip to catch the infamous White Stag had brought them back to this world. They returned the same ages they had been when they first entered Narnia. They were back to being mere children, children with the minds and maturity of royalty. It was hard adjusting back to their previous lives.

"It's been two years," Peter pointed out, returning to his seat between Danielle and Lucy. "How long does he expect us to wait?"

Danielle sighed quietly as her fingers made their way up to the silver locket that hung around her neck. It, along with a bow and some arrows, had been her first gift from Father Christmas. While it possessed no extraordinary magical powers like Lucy's healing cordial or Susan's horn, it was equally as special. She _never _went a day without wearing it. What she loved most about it was the little lion charm (her gift from Father Christmas a year later) that was also attached to the chain. It reminded them all that Aslan was always near. But now all it did was provide a constant reminder of Narnia.

"I think it's time to accept the fact that we live _here_." Susan said, trying to sound strong. "It's no use pretending any different."

The others shrugged and looked down at their hands or off to the side, welcoming the silence that fell over them. Each of them was busy thinking about something he or she missed most about Narnia when Lucy suddenly leaped up from her seat yelling about something pinching her.

"Be quiet Lu…" Susan whispered glancing around to see if anyone she knew was staring.

Peter was next to feel the odd pinch. "Stop it!" he growled looking at Edmund.

"I'm not even sitting next to you!" the younger boy shot back.

Danielle, who was sitting to Edmund, was the next to fly out of her seat. "Edmund!" she yelled glaring down at him.

"I'm not touch—" Edmund began before jumping to his feet.

"What is that?" Susan asked staring down at the bench intensely.

"It feels like magic!" Lucy yelled happily over the noise that was starting to build around them.

"Quick, everyone holds hands!"

"I'm not holding your hand!" Edmund yelled looking at Danielle with disgust.

"Who says I want to hold yours!" Danielle snapped. "I don't know what you do with it when no one's looking!"

"Just do it!" Peter yelled as the noise increased.

They watched anxiously as the ceiling lamps swung around violently, smashing into each other and sending sparks raining down on them. It was only when the bricks began to fly away that Danielle grabbed Edmund's hand out of fear. The walls of the station fell apart and a bright light emerged, surrounding them completely as the noise quickly died down.

They stood completely still, squeezing each other's hands to make sure everyone was there. Slowly their eyes began to adjust and they realized they were now standing in a cave on a beach.

It wasn't just any old beach though; something in them recognized it immediately.

They were back…

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**Words From Your Author:**

**Hello everyone! Welcome to ****Who Would Have Thought****! I hope you enjoyed this first chapter. Links to pictures of characters and other things are posted on my profile.**

**To my old readers who read ****Unexpected Feelings****, you know that this is my new rewritten version. I'm so sorry that you all have to basically start over and I hope you read every chapter even if you already know what's going on. I am adding some new things along the way so you'll still have some surprises! :)**

**To my new readers, again, welcome! You're in for quite a ride with this story and hopefully I'll be able to update frequently and finish this story once and for all. :)**

**And for ALL of you, I have a question to ask. I'm thinking that maybe I should get a twitter account for this story. That way for those of you who have an account, you'll be able to know when I'm updating, ask me questions, and maybe, just maybe, get little tid bits of what I'm writing…hehe.**

**So tell me what you think of that idea in your review! Just click that little box down there. 3**


	2. Lost Memories

**Chapter 2: Lost Memories**

"A-are we…are we really _here_?" Danielle whispered, her voice barely able to be heard over the sound of waves crashing against the earth.

Susan and Lucy glanced at each other excitedly and took off sprinting towards the waters, giggling joyfully as their school jackets and shoes were thrown to the side. Peter laughed and ran after his sisters, splashing large amounts of water in their direction to completely drench them.

Danielle grinned and shook her head as she watched him wrap his arms around Lucy's waist and drop her back into the water playfully. She began to unbutton her blazer so she could go join them, but stopped when she felt a tug on one of her arms.

Looking down she realized that her hand was still tightly clamped in Edmund's. She glanced up at him, and pulled his arm, trying to get his attention, but he was too busy looking around at the scenery to notice.

"Uh, Edmund," she said tugging his arm again. "You can let go of my hand now."

"Wha— oh!"

He released his grip on her hand and wiped his sweaty palm against the front of his trousers, avoiding her stare. Danielle rolled her eyes and pulled off her jacket and shoes before running down to where the others were. Edmund joined them a few seconds later and the simple splashing between them turned into a competition of girls against boys.

They laughed and ran around carelessly, acting as if they were young children again.

Edmund snuck up behind Danielle, prepared to tackle her into the water, when something above her head on the cliffs caught his interest instead. "Where do you suppose we are?" he asked curiously.

"Where do you think?" Danielle asked smirking sarcastically.

Edmund shot her an unimpressed glare and returned his attention back to the cliffs before stating, "I don't remember there being any ruins in Narnia."

The others followed his gaze up to the sea cliffs and spotted what looked to be the remains of what was once a large building.

It was strange; they had explored every inch of Narnia during their reign, but not once had they come across ruins like this.

"Maybe we're in Archenland, somewhere near the border of Narnia?" Lucy suggested.

"Well, there's only one way to find out." Danielle said as she began to make her way to shore.

They pulled their shoes back on and, after a few minutes of searching, began to make their way up a pathway they believed would take them up to the ruins.

"Oh, I can't believe that we're back! Just wait till everyone sees us like this, they'll be so surprised! And if we really are in Archenland we can have tea with Cor and Corin before we go back to Narnia!" Lucy chatted away happily to Peter and Susan as they led the group up the hill. Danielle and Edmund followed quietly behind them, lost in their own thoughts.

The idea of being back in Narnia still hadn't set into Danielle's mind completely. She kept expecting to wake up any minute back home in England. It was so strange, one minute they were standing at the station waiting for the train to take them to school and the next they were here.

_Oh Aslan, always keeping us on our toes, _she thought smiling to herself as she fiddled with her locket fondly.

She continued to walk up the hill, her mind preoccupied with so many thoughts, that she failed to notice that one of her shoes had come undone. Her foot came down on the lace and as she went to take another step she stumbled forward. Unable to balance herself, Danielle fell face first into the dirt with a muffled 'oof'.

She remained still on the ground, in no hurry to get up as the pain began to sink in. A low chuckle filled her ears and she let out a prolonged groan. She spit the dirt out of her mouth and looked up to see Edmund standing in front of her with his arms crossed and a smug look on his face.

"Well, well, well, I was beginning to wonder when this would happen." he said smirking down at her. "You know, they really should have titled you Queen Danielle, the Klutz, not the Spirited."

"I am not a klutz." Danielle muttered defensively as she pulled herself up into a sitting position.

Edmund laughed loudly. "Do you actually believe that?" he asked her. "You trip over everything, even thin air! Remember when we were walking in a parade in town and you tripped over a bouquet of flowers someone had thrown. Oh and there was that time when we were visiting the Beavers and you tripped while crossing the bridge, and Peter and I had to jump into the river to save you. And—"

"Oh, shut up and help me Edmund!" she said scowling.

The young king shook his head, but grabbed her hands anyway, roughly pulling her onto her feet. "Let's go," he said releasing her hands, "the others are probably waiting for us."

Danielle moved to take a step forward, but as her weight shifted from one foot to the other a sharp pain shot up through her leg and she fell forward into Edmund's back, accidently pushing him to the ground.

"What the hell Danielle?" he shouted angrily.

She let out a whimper. "My ankle, it hurts." she explained, rubbing the implied body part gently.

Edmund's expression remained hard as he looked down at her foot. "It's swollen," he stated applying pressure to the reddened area, earning another whimper from Danielle. "You sprained it."

"Really," she asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm, "I hadn't thought of that."

_Never fails at being annoying, does she? _Edmund thought rolling his eyes. "You'll be fine. Maybe Susan will know what to do until we can get you some medical attention." he said helping her up. "Do you think you'll be able to walk?"

She frowned. "My first attempt didn't work so what do you think?"

"I'll take that as a no." he replied dryly. "Here, wrap an arm around my shoulders and I'll support your weight. You can hop the rest of the way, it shouldn't be too far."

She nodded and did as he said. He wrapped his around her waist, helping her balance before continuing to make their way up the path. It turned out however, that they still had a bit to go before reaching the top. They were moving too slow for Edmund, and Danielle was beginning to tire herself out trying to keep up with his large steps.

"Okay, stop." he said coming to a halt.

"Why?" she breathed, "What's—Edmund!"

Her feet suddenly gave out from underneath her and she fell backwards as Edmund lifted her up into his arms.

"W-What are you doing?" she asked gaping at him.

"Honestly," Edmund said frowning, "how stupid are you?"

She glared up at him and hit his arm forcefully. He responded by loosening his grip on her and she locked an arm tightly around his neck out fear of being dropped. Edmund smirked and he resumed the task of walking up the trail.

He wouldn't really drop her. If he did that would only cause her more injuries and he would end up getting an ear full from his siblings about 'playing nice'. Not that it was anything new. He and Danielle had been getting the same speech for years.

**-:|D&E|:-**

"_Don't give up! We've almost got them back to the fort!"_

"_Keep shooting!"_

_Fake gun shots filled the warm, summer air as two little boys ran around their backyard, their hands shaped like guns as they pretended to shoot each other in a make believe battle._

"_No fair Ed! I shot you at least three times and you're still standing!"_

_Edmund opened his mouth to argue back that he had not been shot once when the back door leading to the house opened. His two sisters walked out into the yard, but what really caught his attention was the girl following them. He had never seen her before._

"_Danielle, these are our brothers."_

_Peter walked over to the girls, rubbing his hand against his pants to rid them of any dirt, before offering it to the new girl. "Nice to meet you Danielle, I'm Peter." he said politely._

_She smiled at him shyly and took his hand, shaking it._

_Edmund was horrified. His brother, his own flesh and blood, has just touch a…a girl! GIRLS HAD COOTIES! Peter was going to die from the cootie disease and he, Edmund, would have no one to play solider with._

"_Aren't you going to say hi Edmund?" Susan asked trying to sound stern like her mother._

_He ignored her and continued to glare at the new girl. She shifted her eyes away from him, pulling on the bottom of her dress uneasily. "What were you playing?" she asked quietly._

"_Soldier." he replied stiffly._

"_Oh! Can we play?" she asked bouncing up and down. Her nervous expression had vanished and an excited smile had taken up her face._

_Edmund snorted. "You can't play, you're girls!"_

_Her smile faded away and she looked at him confused. "What?"_

"_You. Are .A. Girl." he repeated slowly. Hadn't he been clear enough the first time?_

"_Why does that matter?" Lucy asked._

_Edmund looked at his sister's and Danielle's confused faces. He sighed irritably, not knowing that he was about to make one of the biggest mistake in his seven year old life. "Girls can't fight. You wouldn't be able to survive on a battlefield. So, go back to playing with your dolls." _

_He turned away from them, tired of the conversation. _That should show them, _he thought triumphantly…right before he was knocked to the ground._

**-:|D&E|:-**

"_What on earth happened?" Tom Parkinson asked shocked by his niece's current appearance. The expensive new dress he had bought her earlier that week was all muddy and torn and so were her white socks, one of which was down by her ankle instead of at the knee. _

_Her hair wasn't any better. The dark curls she had inherited from his older brother were sticking up in odd places and the red ribbon his wife had spent a half hour tying was missing._

_The four adults turned their gaze to Edmund. His white dress shirt and pants were as dirty as Danielle's dress, his knees were scrapped up and his hair was sticking up everywhere. What really caught their attention though was the muddy red ribbon clutched tightly in his hand._

"_He did it!"_

"_She did it!"_

**-:|D&E|:-**

Edmund had to bite his lip hard to keep from smiling or laughing at the memory. It was strange, really, that he and Danielle did not get along. He supposed that it could be because they both had such strong personalities that were different from each other. He was quiet, closed to others, and calculating, always thinking one step ahead. She, on the other hand, was rather loud at times, very open about her thoughts and feelings, and impulsive.

But weren't opposites supposed to attract? Help bring out the better qualities in the other? Maybe the fact that they both had bad tempers and were too stubborn for their own good stopped them from working well together.

Edmund caught sight of Peter's blonde hair as they neared the top and sighed with relief. _Finally, _he thought quickening his pace.

"Ed, there you are! We were starting to worry, is Danielle with—" Peter paused midsentence, his eyebrows rising in surprise at the odd sight in front of him. "Uh…"

Susan came into view next, her eyes narrowed at him. "What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything!" he replied defensively. "The klutz tripped over her own feet and hurt herself."

"Stop calling me that!" Danielle growled angrily. "And as comfy as I am up here, I'd appreciate it if you put me down…now!"

The dark haired boy frowned, annoyed by the tone of voice she was using. He had just carried her up a hill and she was not as light as she looked. So, instead of putting her down gently on her feet, he let her drop to the ground like a ragdoll.

She landed with a thud, a groan escaping from her. "That's not what I meant!" she yelled sitting up and rubbing her lower back.

A triumphant smirk crossed Edmund's lips and he opened his mouth to give a witty response when something in Susan's hand caught his attention. "What's that you're holding Susan?" he asked pointing at it.

"What? This?" she asked opening her hand to reveal a small, golden object.

"Hey, that's mine!" he said immediately recognizing it. "It's from my chess set."

"Which chess set?" Peter asked curiously.

Edmund shrugged, rolling his eyes at how clueless his brother was. "Well I didn't exactly have a solid gold chess set in Finchley did I?"

"No, it can't be." Lucy gasped catching their attention. She took off running towards a small hill, gesturing for the others to follow her once she was at the top.

Peter bent down and picked Danielle up, just like Edmund had a while ago, before running after his siblings.

"Lucy, where are we?" Danielle asked looking around. They were standing in a clearing, surrounded by piles of rubble and pieces of cement flooring. She had an odd feeling that she had been here before, but couldn't quite put her finger on it.

"Don't you see?" Lucy asked eagerly.

When no one responded she grabbed Peter's arm and led him up another small hill where five broken structures stood. She motioned for Peter to put Danielle down in front of one structure and then positioned him in front of the one in the middle. She repeated the process with Edmund and Susan before moving to stand next Danielle.

"I still don't understand where we are…" Susan said still confused.

"Imagine walls!" Lucy said pointing at the trees surrounding the clearing. "And columns!" she pointed to the rubble. "And a glass roof!" she motioned the sky above them.

And it suddenly made sense.

"Cair Paravel."

It was their home.

Where they had eaten a countless number of meals together, where they had slept, where they had spent hours staying up late drinking tea and talking.

Important meetings with the Royal Court were held almost every day, grand balls with hundreds of people invited every month, numerous birthdays!

And not to mention the hours upon hours they spent training in sword fighting, archery, hand to hand combat.

The hallways and rooms were full of memories and it hurt to see everything in ruins. Clearly a lot of time had passed since they left…more than just two years like on Earth.

"I don't understand," Danielle began as she brushed some dirt off her throne, "how could this happen?"

"Catapults." she heard Edmund reply. He was bent over a large boulder, carefully examining it with his dark eyes. "This didn't just happen. Cair Paravel was attacked."

"But who would attack it?" Danielle asked.

He shrugged. "I don't know. People don't exactly stamp their initials on boulders before catapulting, do they?"

"Oh, shut up." Danielle mumbled to herself.

They moved away from their thrones and continued to explore what was left of the once magnificent, white castle. Refusing to allow Peter to carry her around, Danielle hopped around on her one good foot, grabbing the nearest stable object to steady herself whenever she began to lose her balance.

"Can we do something about my ankle?" she complained after accidently placing weight on her injured foot. "I don't know how much longer I'll be able to go without collapsing."

"If I only I had my cordial, we could heal it in a second." Lucy said wishfully.

"Edmund, give me a hand here will you?" Peter asked as he began to push at a vine covered wall.

With his brother's help, the wall was pushed to the side, revealing an old wooden door behind it. Peter pulled on some loose wood around the lock, eventually tearing the whole thing off. The door swung open with a loud creak and they looked down at the long, dark stairway, unsure whether to follow it or not.

Peter grabbed the bottom of his shirt, pulling at it till it ripped off. He bent down and picked up a long stick, wrapping the fabric around it and tying it in a knot. "I don't suppose you have any matches, do you?" he asked looking at his brother.

Edmund raised an eyebrow at the stick before flipping open his bag. "No, but would this help?" he asked pulling out a shiny, silver torch.

The girls stifled their giggles as Peter stared blankly at his makeshift torch. He sighed and threw it aside. "You could have mentioned that sooner." he said chuckling.

Edmund smirked at his brother and switched the torch on, leading the way into the dark tunnel.

As they walked down the stairs, Lucy leaned in towards Danielle and whispered, "Why does he have a torch in his school bag?"

"Maybe so he can sneak out at night to meet some girl." Danielle replied as they burst into a fit of giggles.

They eventually reached a golden colored gate and looked through the bars to discover a chamber full of sparkling jewels, elaborately decorated vases, beautiful paintings, and thousands of gold coins strewn across the stone floor. The most noticeable feature though was the five statues that stood against a wall, large trunks placed in front of them.

"It's the treasure room." Susan announced excitedly. She threw open the gate and they all rushed towards their respective chests.

Danielle ran her fingers across the top of the trunk, tracing the large D.O.P craved into it. A soft smile formed on her lips and she unlatched the lock, but before she could open it Lucy was standing next to her, holding a glass bottle in her hand.

"Guess what I found." she said grinning as she swirled the contents in the bottle around.

"Oh, thank God." the older girl mumbled opening her mouth. One drop and her ankle was good as new. "Thanks Lu." she said rotating her foot.

She turned back to her chest, excited to see what she would find, and lifted the heavy lid open. Her smile grew as she looked inside to find all her old things. Everything was there! Her favorite dresses, books with worn pages from being read multiple times, old pieces of jewelry, even her crown!

But her most important possessions were her bow and arrows. There was no way she'd be able to function properly in Narnia without them. She picked up an arrow and felt the feathered end of it, relishing at how soft it was.

"I was so tall." Lucy stated, now back at her own chest. She had pulled out a cream colored dress that was far too big for her to wear.

"Well, you were older than." Susan said, a sentimental smile crossing her face.

"As opposed to a hundred years later, when you're younger." Edmund added chuckling. They turned to find him wearing a silver helmet too large for his head.

"Hmm, I always knew you had a big head." Danielle snickered as she pulled her quiver out.

Edmund rolled his eyes and turned back to his chest, choosing to ignore her comment.

"That's strange…" Susan said catching their attention, "my horns missing. "I must have left it in my saddle the day we went back.

Peter, who had just opened his chest, pulled his sword out of its sheath, staring at the words engraved on it. "I think it's about time we found out what's going on."

"Can we change first?" Susan asked. "I smell like salt water."

"That's probably best," Peter answered. "Besides, my shoes are still kind of soggy."

They all chuckled before turning to their chests to find some spare clothes.

_Oh goody, we get to wear dresses again, _Danielle thought as she pulled out a green, quarter sleeved, dress.

* * *

**So…no need to tell me I'm an ass for not updating when I told a bunch of you I would. I feel horrible, but every time I went to read over the chapter something would pop up. Sorry if there are an errors or the chapter doesn't flow well, I was in a hurry to update.**

**Anyway, clearly a lot of you didn't read the AN on the last chapter or have reallyyyyy short memories cause I think only two people told me the Twitter idea was good. I'm gonna set up a poll for it and hopefully you'll answer.**

**Hope you enjoyed! And please review, even if it's to tell me I suck at updating. ;)**


	3. Troubled Thoughts

**Chapter 3: Troubled Thoughts**

"Danielle, if we want to find out what's happened here, you need to hurry up!" Peter demanded loudly, his voice bouncing off the room's stone walls.

"Hold on a minute!" Danielle replied struggling to tie up the back of her dress as her fingers became tangled in the laces for fourth time.

She heard footsteps approach the screen she was changing behind, and looked over her shoulder to see Susan poking her head around the side, a knowing smile on her lips.

"Need help?"

Danielle nodded and pulled her hair out of the way for Susan. "After we figure out what's happened, I'm going to the nearest dress shop and introducing the concept of zippers to them." she stated irritably.

They came out from behind the screen a few minutes later to find the others gathering weapons and other equipment they would need for their journey. Danielle walked over to her trunk and looked inside, immediately pulling out her bow and quiver. Deciding that that was all she would need, she shut the lid of the trunk and made her way over to the entrance where the Pevensie siblings were waiting.

As she neared them, Edmund glanced up from adjusting his belt, his eyes darting across her figure. The corners of his mouth turned up slightly as he approved her dress, admiring the way its color brought out the green in her hazel eyes. She glanced over at him and he quickly looked away, trying to look busy as he fiddled with his sword. _What on Earth am I doing?_

"Everyone got their things?" Peter asked impatiently. "Alright, let's go."

They exited the treasure room together, and Peter and Edmund pushed the stone wall back in front of the entrance to hide it. They didn't want any of their things missing when they came back later…well, _if_ they came back.

Danielle and Lucy stopped as the others continued to make their way down the pathway that would led to the beach, and looked back at the ruins of their home. Nostalgia overcame them and they hoped deep down that they would be able to come back and restore the beautiful castle, even if they had to build it brick by brick themselves.

"Come on two! You're holding us up!" Susan yelled interrupting their thoughts.

Glancing at Cair Paravel one last time, the two girls turned around and ran to catch up with the others.

Soon, they were walking along the beach they had arrived on, trying to decide where they should go next. Danielle played with the tip of her braid as they walked along the sandy shore, ignoring the discussion going on behind her as she thought over a few things in her mind.

She glanced over at the water beside them and stopped walking as she spotted a small boat with two people floating a few yards away from the coast. She turned to tell the others, but it seemed that they had already noticed, springing into action immediately.

"Drop him!" Susan demanded holding up her armed bow, ready to release the arrow at any second.

Looking back at the boat, Danielle realized that the men on it were holding what looked to be like a small child over the edge, preparing to drop it into the ocean.

_What the hell is going on? _she thought, confused by everything that was going on. It was all too much for her to process at once.

The men looked up at them in alarm, surprised to see people around an area that was usually deserted. They took one look at Susan's arrow and released the person they were holding, more out of fright than choice.

"Oh nice going Susan." Danielle chided as Peter and Edmund ran past to her save their drowning victim.

"At least I'm doing something!" the older girl snapped releasing her arrow.

It flew across the water and hit one of the befuddled men in the chest, successfully knocking him overboard. His companion looked back at Susan in fear and dove into the water willingly, wanting to avoid a hit from the Gentle Queen.

Peter emerged from the water shortly after, his clothes soaked to the skin, a small body of what was actually a dwarf in his arms. Edmund followed closely behind, pulling the abandoned boat onto shore with him. They would probably be able to make some use out of it later.

The dwarf was laid gently on the ground by Peter and Lucy dropped down next him, quickly cutting the rope binding his hands together with her dagger. Once free, he rolled over onto his knees and pulled off the cloth covering his mouth, coughing a sufficient amount of sea water onto the sand.

He turned angrily towards Susan, his eye ablaze with anger. "Drop him!" he roared. "Is that the best you could come up with?"

Susan stared back at him in shock, taken aback by the dwarf's behavior. "A simple 'thank you' would suffice."

"They were doing just fine drowning me without your help!" he snapped.

"Maybe we should have let them." Peter spoke up, coming to his sister's defense.

As the dwarf opened his mouth to say something, Danielle decided it was best to interrupt him now before things got out of hand.

"Alright, that's enough!" she said firmly. "Why don't you tell us your name?" she suggested turning to their guest.

He gave her an irritated look, but replied nonetheless. "Trumpkin."

"Well Trumpkin," Danielle continued, "do you know why those men were trying to kill you?"

"They're Telmarines. That's what they do." he replied, acting as if it was the most obvious thing ever.

"Telmarines?" Edmund said frowning. "In Narnia?"

The dwarf scoffed. "Where have you been for the last few hundred years?"

"It's a bit of a long story." Lucy answered smiling as Susan handed Peter his sword.

The sheathed weapon caught the dwarf's attention and he looked up to examine his rescuers carefully. His eyes widened with shock. "Oh no…you've got to be kidding me," he groaned. "You're it? You're the Kings and Queens of Old?"

_Kings and Queens of Old? _Danielle thought. Is that what they were called now? They weren't that ancient; Danielle had only turned fifteen this past summer. Exactly how long had it been since they left Narnia?

"High King Peter, the Magnificent." Peter said proudly, sticking his hand out for Trumpkin to shake.

Danielle and Susan rolled their eyes, shaking the heads. "Probably could have left off that last bit." the older girl told him.

"Probably." the dwarf said chuckling, smiling for the first time.

Peter's ears turned pink in embarrassment. "You might be surprised." he warned drawing his sword.

The dwarf's smile dropped as he eyed the sword. "Oh, you don't want to do that, boy." he cautioned shaking his head.

"Not me, him" Peter explained offering his sword to Trumpkin as he nodded his head toward his younger brother.

Edmund's hand flew to the handle of his sword, grasping it tightly. It was clear that he was itching for the opportunity to wield it again after such a long time.

Trumpkin took the sword from Peter gingerly, his arms dropping from the weight of the heavy blade.

Edmund drew his own sword and swung it impatiently, giving the others a smug looked as they back away to give the two some space.

_This will be a piece of cake, _he thought readying himself.

Danielle glanced over at Trumpkin and noticed the smirk tugging on the corner of the dwarf's mouth as he lunged forward, swinging Peter's sword aggressively at Edmund's head.

Taken off guard by the sudden attack, the young king managed to duck in time, narrowly avoiding the blade. Trumpkin took the opportunity to strike again and hit the king's forehead with butt of his handle.

"Ouch…" Danielle muttered wincing.

"Aww, are you alright?" Trumpkin taunted swinging the sword.

Edmund ducked again and moved swiftly behind his opponent, hitting hit on the butt with the flat side of his sword.

Danielle and Lucy chuckled into their hands as Trumpkin lost his balance and stumbled forward. Edmund glanced over at them and gave them a quick smirk before turning his attention back to the dwarf, his eyebrows furrowing in concentration. He needed to focus on defeating his opponent.

This time when Trumpkin swung at him he was ready. He blocked the attack and swung his sword over his head, jumping as the dwarf aimed for his legs this time. He swung his sword down to block another hit from Trumpkin and brought it up, causing their swords to move in a giant circle in the air.

The familiar and comforting sound of metal clashing quickly rung through his ear, and Edmund began to swing at Trumpkin more forcefully. He hit one side of the dwarf's sword, then the other, then the first side again until Trumpkin lost control of his own sword.

He stumbled back onto his knees, and Edmund's arm swung up before pausing, the tip of his sword positioned perfectly above the dwarf's heaving chest.

"Beard's and bedsteads," Trumpkin gasped as he started up at the panting king. He may have been a little rusty from not wielding a sword for over two years, but there was no doubt that he was still one of the greatest swordsman in country if not the best.

"Maybe that horn worked after all…" he muttered.

Edmund lowered his sword and looked back at the others; his gaze lingering on Danielle's longest.

"What horn?" Susan asked curiously.

"I'll explain later," Trumpkin said urgently, "right now I need to get you to Aslan's How."

**-:|D&E|:-**

It was quiet as they traveled down the still river, the only sound coming from the oars as they slipped gently back into the water at a steady pace. Danielle, who had been forced to sit on the floor because there was barely any room for all of them, rested her chin against her arm on the edge boat, letting her other hand hang over the side, her finger tips brushing the cool surface the water beneath them.

"They're so still…" Lucy whispered, breaking them all out of their thoughts.

Trumpkin looked over at the young queen and followed her gaze up to the greenery above them. "They're trees," he replied dryly, "what do you expect?"

Lucy lowered her gaze to look at him. "They used to dance." she stated sadly.

Trumpkin sighed and looked away from her. "It wasn't long after you left that the Telmarines invaded." he said looking down. "Those who survived retreated to the woods, and the trees, they retreated so deep into themselves that they haven't been heard from since."

Danielle sat up and looked around at the others, their guilty expressions mirroring her own.

They had left their country at the worst possible time, leaving it defenseless against outside forces. No wonder Trumpkin had been so disappointed when he first saw them. He, and probably hundreds of other Narnians, had lost faith in them.

"I don't understand," Lucy said. "How could Aslan let this happen?"

Trumpkin snorted. "Aslan? Thought he abandoned us when you lot did."

Danielle's shoulders sagged, the guilt sinking even deeper.

"We didn't mean to leave you know." Peter stated after an eternity of silence.

"We never _wanted _to leave." Danielle added softly, resting her head on her arm again.

The dwarf simply shrugged. "Makes no difference now does it?"

She sighed and returned her attention to the water, wishing the conversation would just end.

"Get us to the Narnians," Peter instructed firmly, "and it will."

**-:|D&E|:-**

It was another half hour before the small boat finally came to a stop. It wobbled from the sudden weight shift as Danielle stood up, and she let out a squeal, throwing her arms out in attempt to regain some balance. A pair of hands grabbed her hips and helped steady her, preventing her falling off the side of the boat. She grabbed the hands and squeezed tightly, eventually regaining her balance.

She sighed and looked over her shoulder to thank whoever had helped her.

It was Edmund.

She tensed up and her mouth suddenly felt dry. She let go of his hands and muttered a quiet thanks before rushing off the boat as quick as she could. Moving to the side to allow the others to get off, Danielle stood patiently with Lucy as the others pulled their small vessel onto the rocky shore.

"Oh, Danielle, look!" Lucy exclaimed, jumping excitedly.

The older girl paused in adjusting her quiver strap and turned around, watching cautiously as Lucy moved away from her and towards the large, black bear standing a few yards away from them.

"Why, hello there." Lucy said cheerfully nearing him.

The bear looked up at the sound of her voice and eyed her suspiciously.

"It's alright, we're friends." she assured him.

Danielle's eyebrows furrowed in confusion as she watched the bear for a reaction. Why wasn't he doing anything? Surely he would have said or done something by now if he understood what Lucy was saying.

A wave of anxiety washed over her. Something wasn't right.

Slowly, she began to follow after Lucy, keeping a close eye on the bear. She needed to the young girl away from it before something bad happened. "Lucy," she warned quietly, "I think it's best if we leave him alone."

The young queen scoffed. "Oh, stop being so overly cautious Dani and have a little fun." she scolded, grabbing Danielle's arm and pulling her closer to the bear. "Besides, he looks harmless, see!"

The bear grunted from all the sudden movements, and stood up on its hind feet, towering over them threateningly

"Don't move your Majesties!" Trumpkin yelled from behind them.

The two girls looked over their shoulders to see the others watching them with frightened expressions just as the bear let out a terrifying growl and started charging towards them.

"Oh no," Danielle mumbled grabbing Lucy's hand. They lifted the bottom of their dresses ad began sprinting back towards the others, desperately trying to outrun the bear.

"Stay away from them!" they heard Susan yell, an arrow ready and probably aimed at the vicious creature behind them.

Lucy's feet became tangled in the skirt of her red dress and she stumbled forward, dragging Danielle onto the rough, rocky ground beneath them.

"Shoot Susan shoot!" they hear Edmund yell.

Danielle looked back to find the bear only a foot away, ready to attack at any second. Why hadn't Susan released her arrow yet!

The bear gave another growl and stood up, towering over them once again. Danielle closed her eye and put an arm over Lucy, who was screaming, waiting for the impact.

_Whoosh!_

The bear groaned and fell backwards onto its side, motionless. Danielle rolled over and looked at it, noticing the arrow sticking out of its chest. She glanced back at Susan, only to find that her arrow was still notched. She hadn't released it…so who had?

Trumpkin walked out from behind a confused Susan, an empty bow in his hand.

"Why wouldn't he stop?" Susan asked lowering her bow.

Peter rushed to his younger sister's aid and pulled her away from the bear while Edmund help Danielle up, both of their swords pointed cautiously at the still creature in case it suddenly came back to life.

Danielle continued to hold onto Edmund's hand, gripping it so tightly that he was beginning to lose some circulation to his fingertips. He lowered his sword and watched as she slowly backed away to hide behind him, her hazel eyes still full of fear as they darted rapidly across the bear's figure. He gave her hand a light squeeze, trying to give her some reassurance that he was there to protect her whenever she needed it, but she didn't seem to notice the caring gesture.

Trumpkin bent over the motionless bear, examining it closely. "I suspect he was hungry." he said replying to Susan's question.

"Thanks." Lucy said clutching Peter's tunic tightly.

"Was…was he wild?" a small voice asked from behind Edmund. Danielle peeked over his shoulder, watching tensely as the dwarf nudged the bear in different place to make sure it wasn't still breathing.

"I don't think he could talk at all" Peter stated looking a little surprised.

"Get treated like a dumb animal long enough, that's what you become." Trumpkin replied whipping out his dagger. "You may find Narnia a more savage place than you remember."

Danielle's eyes widened as she realized what Trumpkin was about to do, and buried her face into Edmund's shoulder remorsefully as tears began to gather in her eyes. Even if the bear had tried to eat her, she couldn't be angry or upset with it. It was just trying to survive in this cruel world just like everyone else.

Edmund sighed and wrapped his arms around her, bringing her into his chest as Trumpkin began to dig away at the bear.

**-:|D&E|:-**

"You know, I don't remember the walk to the river being _this _long." Danielle moaned as they walked by the same rock formation for the fifth time. They had been wandering around in the woods for what felt like hours, and her feet felt like they were about to fall off.

"Peter, are you sure we're going the right way?"

The blonde boy continued walking and glanced back at her momentarily. "That's the problem with girls," he said smirking, "can't carry a map in your heads."

"That's because out heads have something in them." Lucy shot back. She and Danielle giggled joyfully, high-fiving each other.

"I wish he'd just listened to the D.L.F. in the first place." Susan explained as Edmund hopped up on a boulder next to Danielle.

"D.L.F.?" he asked.

Danielle pretended not to hear him and continued to walk on, avoiding any and all eye contact with him. After finally pulling herself together back at the rocky shore, she had been too embarrassed to look Edmund in the eye. She had _almost _fallen apart in his arms like some weak, little girl. That was not good.

They kept on trotting through the trees, much to Danielle's displeasure, until they made it to the side of a cliff where the river was. Carefully inching closer to the edge, Danielle looked over the edge to find what seemed like a fifty foot drop. She swallowed uneasily and backed away quickly, bumping into Edmund.

"Better be careful that you don't fall over the edge Dani," he whispered into her ear. "Cause I certainly will _not _be jumping off the edge to save you."

Danielle frowned and pushed him away from her. "_You _better be careful that someone doesn't _push _you off the edge." she growled walking away from him. He merely laughed at her threat.

"Is there another way down?" Susan asked.

"Yeah, falling." the dwarf replied.

"Well we weren't lost." Peter added smugly. Danielle rolled her eyes, growing more tired of the High King's increasing bad attitude. If he kept it up he'd eventually get them all killed by some wild animal.

There's a ford near Beruna," Trumpkin offered. "How do you feel about swimming?"

They agreed on this option and dwarf began to lead them away from the cliff.

"Aslan?" Lucy whispered.

The rest of them stopped abruptly and whipped their heads back around, glancing everywhere in attempt to see the glorious lion.

Lucy continued to shout excitedly. "It's Aslan! It's Aslan over there!"

Their eyes gazed the section she was pointing at frivolously, but they caught no sign of a golden mane.

"Don't you see?" Lucy said noticing her sibling's and friend's frowns. "He's right—" she turned back around, her smile dropping. "…there."

Peter moved forward and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Do you see him now?" Trumpkin asked in a condescending tone.

The others turned to give him annoyed looks. Trust Trumpkin to say the least consoling thing at a moment like this.

"I'm not crazy." Lucy said turning back to the other. "He really was there. He wanted us to follow him."

Peter glanced back across the cliff. "I'm sure there is any number of lions in this wood." he said trying to sound reassuring. "Just like that bear."

Lucy frowned up at him, sure that he would take her side. "I think I know Aslan when I see him." she said harshly.

"Look," Trumpkin said tiredly, "I'm not about to jump off a cliff for someone who doesn't exist."

As much as she wanted to disagree, Danielle had to agree with him, not completely, but for the most part he was right. Although she doubted that Lucy would ever lie about something like this, the excitement of being back in Narnia could have gotten to the young girl's mind, causing her to see things.

"The last time I didn't believe Lucy," Edmund spoke up, catching their attention, "I ended up looking pretty stupid." He looked at his sister as he said this and she gave him a grateful smile.

Peter sighed. "Why wouldn't I have seen him?" he asked, voicing the exist question on Danielle's mind.

Lucy turned to him. "Maybe you weren't looking."

They stood there quietly for another minute before Trumpkin walked away, not waiting for them to follow him to the Beruna.

**-:|D&E|:-**

"So, where exactly do you think you saw Aslan?"

Lucy turned to give her brother a disapproving looking and said, "I wish you'd all stop trying to act like grown-ups. I don't _think _I saw him, I _know _I saw him."

They were back by the cliff—Danielle's feet about ready to fall off—after having found a few hundred Telmarines by the river building some kind of bridge. Trumpkin and Peter had been doubtful about returning to the rush, but had no other choice but to follow when Danielle, Edmund, and Susan chose Lucy's suggestion over theirs.

"It was right over…" the young girl began, peering across the gap. The ground suddenly crumbled underneath her and disappeared into hole, her screaming filling the air.

"LUCY!" they yelled rushing forward to see where she had gone.

She was sitting on lower level of the cliff, nervously looking out at the gorge.

"Here," she said laughing shakily.

Looking out at the gorge, the others realized that Lucy had in fact found a pathway down the side of the cliff that would take them down to the river. One by one they carefully began to the journey down, helping each other in places where it was difficult to cross.

Danielle kept a hand against the side of the cliff as they made their way through a rather thin section of the rock and earth. While she didn't have a fear of heights, there was still an uneasy feeling in stomach. She wanted nothing more than to be on solid ground, even if it meant she had to walk another thirty miles.

"Are you okay?" a voice asked from behind.

Edmund.

He just couldn't leave her alone today could he? She couldn't remember a single moment throughout the day where he hadn't been trying to help her which was strange because he _never _tried to help her.

"I'm fine." she said through gritted teeth.

He chuckled, amused by her irritation. "Really?" he asked. "Because it doesn't seem like you are. You seem a little…tense."

"Oh shut up Edmund! I don't need your pathetic comments right now."

"They are not pathetic! I'm just being observant and trying to make conversation."

"You're the last person I want to make conversation with!"

Trumpkin glanced back at them before turning towards the others. "Are they always like this?" he asked surprised.

"Yup." the three siblings replied nonchalantly.

The dwarf sighed wearily and walked on, continuing to listen to the bickering going on behind him.

**-:|D&E|:-**

"Finally," Danielle groaned as she collapsed onto a log next to Lucy, "my feet feel like they're about to fall off."

After successfully crossing the gorge, they had all agreed that everyone had had enough for the day, and if they wanted to make the same amount of progress the next day, they would need to get some rest. The boys and Trumpkin had collected wood for a fire while the girls scouted nearby in the woods for food they could eat, and soon enough they had a campsite that would last them for the night.

They sat around the fire and told stories of their past life in Narnia to Trumpkin as they ate; laughing at the bittersweet memories they had formed. Danielle though, could hardly join in on the reminiscing. Thoughts about today and its events kept flying through her mind, distracting her from everything.

She quietly sighed in frustration and pushed her bangs out of her eyes, bringing her gaze up from the ground. Her eyes were met by Edmund's and he frowned slightly, giving her a questioning look. Danielle blinked and looked away from him, ignoring his probing gaze. She wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone let alone Edmund.

As the stories ended and dinner disappeared, they each began to pick spots around the glowing fire, ready to settle in for the night. Danielle lay quietly on the grass, listening to the sound crickets in the distance, waiting for sleep to take her. Her eyelids were just starting to droop when the sound of rustling grass caught her attention.

"Lucy," Susan whispered, "why do you think I didn't see Aslan?"

There was some more rustling, and Lucy's surprised voice replied, "You believe me?"

"Well, we got across the gorge." Susan stated.

There was a pause as Lucy contemplated the question. "I don't know." she finally said. "Maybe you didn't want to."

Danielle's eyebrows wrinkled in confusion. She had been wondering the same thing as Susan, but Lucy's answer didn't make any sense. Of course she wanted to see Aslan, things would make some actually damn sense then!

"You always knew we would come back here, didn't you?" Susan asked.

"I hoped so."

Susan sighed and there was some rustling as she lay back down on the grass. "I had finally just gotten used to the idea of being back in England."

"But you are happy to back, aren't you?" Lucy asked with concern.

There was another pause before Susan replied with a simple, "While it lasts."

When Lucy didn't reply after a few minutes, Danielle assumed that the conversation was over and that it was safe to finally turn over. She settled into her spot and closed her eyes, ready to fall asleep, but eavesdropping on Susan and Lucy's discussion had reawakened all her thoughts from earlier in the day.

"Having trouble sleeping too?" a voice whispered.

Danielle's eyes shot open and she raised her head to find Edmund staring at her with his dark, intimidating eyes.

She shifted uncomfortably and frowned. "So what if I can't?"

Edmund shrugged. "I was just wondering, no need to bite my head off."

She rolled her eyes and turned onto her back, staring up at the night sky above her. Susan was right; Danielle had gotten so used to the idea of living in England that she'd forgotten how beautiful Narnia was. The stars were so much brighter here compared to the ones seen in England's murky sky.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked curiously.

She frowned and turned to look at him. "What are talking about?"

"Oh don't play dumb Dani." he said frustratingly. "I know something's on your mind. You've been moody and you spent half the day ignoring me. If this is about earlier when I dropped you I'm sorry okay, but it's not like it's anything new, you're being—"

"It's not about that." Danielle sighed quietly.

He blinked and inched closer to her so he could hear better, leaving an arm length distance between them. "Then what are thinking about?" he demanded.

And before she could stop herself, the words summarizing everything on her mind came tumbling out. "Is Narnia on path of destruction?"

"What?"

"Look around us Edmund;" she said anxiously, "there are so many changes here! Do you remember what Trumpkin told as after that bear almost killed Lucy and me? That Narnia was a lot more savage than last time. How are we supposed to help rescue Narnia if we've missed a thousand years' worth of changes?"

She lay quietly, surprised that she hadn't woken the others up from her ranting. She was more surprised however, that she had revealed these thoughts to Edmund of all people. Lucy or Susan seemed like more probable people to talk to.

Danielle looked at Edmund, expecting to see him stifling his laughter because of her ridiculous thoughts. Instead he was staring intensely at her…again.

"It's stupid, I know." she mumbled avoiding his gaze.

He replied quickly. "It's not stupid." he said. "But I do know that you shouldn't be worried. We'll be able to do it, I know we will."

They lay there quietly for a moment, listening to the sounds of the woods. Finally Danielle broke the silence.

"Thanks for helping me earlier today." she said. "When I tripped and when that bear tried to attack us."

"Susan and Lucy would have killed me if I didn't." he responded shrugging.

"Yeah, I guess. But you were right about one thing earlier," Danielle said, unable to keep a smile from forming on her lips. "I did not appreciate you dropping me on the ground."

Edmund snorted at the memory and turned over so his back was facing her. "Good night Dani."

"Night Ed."

* * *

**Sigh, so where do I begin, huh?**

**First of all, I apologize for the long wait, but I have some valid reason. **

**#1: I just finished my last day of junior year in high school today and if you're American like me you know how hellish it can get during second semester. ACT and AP testing, essays, projects, finals, writing just wasn't my main focus. **

**#2: I lost motivation. I don't think anyone reviewed chapter 2 when I first posted it and well it hurt. How do I know I'm doing a good job if no one tells me what I'm doing right and what I'm doing wrong?**

**#3: I'm a lazy procrastinator…hehe.**

**So, now that I'm on my summer break hopefully I'll get more chapters up (possibly finish this damn story). Please, please, please review. I'd really appreciate it. Oh and is the twitter idea good or not? No one's really replied about it.**

**P.S. If this chapter sucked sorry. I just wanted to get something out.**


	4. Wandering Eyes

**Chapter 4: Wandering Eyes**

The next morning, the sweet sound of birds chirping woke Danielle from her dreams of the Golden Age. She rolled onto her back and stretched her aching muscles, a low groan escaping her mouth. As happy as she was to be back in Narnia, she couldn't help but wish she was in her comfy bed back in England.

She sat up and rubbed her eyes, looking around the quiet campsite. She wasn't the first one up; the spaces where Peter and Lucy had slept the previous night were empty, and their possessions were missing as well.

_They probably went to collect more firewood, _she thought lying back down. _It can't hurt to get some more sleep…_

She curled up on her side and closed her eyes, waiting for sleep to take her when a distant voice she knew all too well screamed, "No, stop!"

Danielle's eyes shot open and she sat up quickly, scrambling around to gather her bow and quiver.

"Susan, wake up!" she yelled trying to wake the others. "Peter and Lucy are in trouble!"

"What?" Susan shrieked waking Trumpkin up.

"Bloody hell, what's with all the shouting?" he asked sitting up.

"Peter and Lucy are in trouble." Danielle explained again.

The dwarf sighed as if he was dealing with a bunch of two year olds, and stood up grabbing his own weapons.

Danielle finished securing the strap on her quiver and glanced around to check if everyone was ready to go.

"Oh god," she groaned as her eyes landed on Edmund's sleeping form.

Susan looked over at him and rolled her eyes. "You get him up; Trumpkin and I will go and find Peter and Lucy."

They hurried off into the woods, and Danielle sighed, looking down at the snoring king.

"Ed, get up!" she said shaking him roughly.

He moaned and swatted her hand away, rolling onto his stomach.

"Edmund, come on!" she whined trying again.

Still, she got no response.

"Your brother and sister are in trouble, Ed! GET UP!" she yelled kicking his side.

His eyes opened wide and he scrambled to get up. He quickly strapped his sword to his belt, and they ran off in the direction the others had gone, the sound of Susan yelling eventually leading them to the source of conflict.

They ran into the small clearing, shocked to suddenly find themselves surrounded by armed Narnians. Danielle eyed the man next to Peter, her grip on her armed bowstring tightening as her eyes traveled down to the sword in his hands.

He was tall, probably the same age as Peter, with broad shoulders, tan skin, and wavy brown hair that fell a little below his chin.

Peter glanced around at the Narnians, narrowing his blue eyes as they returned to the stranger in front of him. "Prince Caspian?"

"Yes…" the man replied hesitantly. Danielle glanced between the two of them, easily sensing the tension amid them.

He glanced down at the sword in his hands and read the inscribing. "High King Peter?" he asked raising his eyebrows in surprise.

"I believe you called?" Peter replied harshly.

Caspian frowned, examining the blonde's face. "Well yes," he explained, his accent becoming more evident, "but I thought you'd be…older."

Danielle laughed quietly at this, but stopped when Peter turned his head to give her a disapproving look.

"Well if you'd like," he said turning back to Caspian, "we could come back in a few years."

"No, no that's alright!" Caspian said hurriedly as Peter began to turn away. "You're just…not exactly what I expected." he explained.

His brown eyes turned to the rest of them and traveled across Danielle and the rest of the Pevensies, his gaze lingering on Susan.

"Neither are you." Edmund admitted as he continued to glance around at the Narnians suspiciously.

"A common enemy unites even the oldest of foes." a badger stated trying to ease the tension in the air.

A brown mouse with a ring and red feather on one of his ear was next to approach. "We have anxiously awaited your return, my liege." he said bowing. "Our hearts and swords are at your service."

"Oh, my gosh, he's so cute." Lucy whispered to Danielle, who nodded in agreement.

"WHO SAID THAT!" the mouse snapped drawing his sword. He looked around the clearing wildly, trying to find the source of the comment.

The two girls glanced at each other and shifted uncomfortably. "Sorry." they mumbled.

"Oh, your Majesties'," he said lowering his sword, "with the greatest respect, I do believe courageous, courteous, or chivalrous might more befit a Knight of Narnia."

"Mmm, we'll keep that in mind." Danielle said winking at him.

"Well," Peter said drawing the attention back to him, "at least we know some of you can handle a blade."

The mouse grinned and nodded his head. "Yes indeed," he replied proudly, "and I have recently put it to good use securing weapons for your army site."

Danielle glanced at Caspian and noted his disheartened expression. Clearly he had assumed he would remain in charge even after the Pevensies and Danielle arrived.

"Good," Peter said turning to look at Caspian, his smile fading, "because we're going to need every sword we can get."

The prince's jaw clenched. "Well then, you'll probably be wanting yours back." he said offering Peter the handle of his sword.

Peter narrowed his eyes and gripped the handle, rolling his eyes as he turned away Caspian. He let the mouse lead him in the direction of the camp site, and slowly the Narnians started to follow after him.

Danielle looked over at Caspian and watched him sigh before walking off to catch up with Peter at the head of the group.

"I feel bad for him." she stated as she and Lucy began to walk after everyone.

Lucy nodded. "I do too. He seems nice enough and if the Narnians can trust him, I don't see why we can't. I just wish Peter would realize this."

"Well Susan certainly seems to like him." Danielle said chuckling as she nodded her head in the older girl's direction.

Lucy looked over at her older sister and laughed, watching as the usually graceful Susan shifted around strangely, craning her neck as she desperately tried to catch a glimpse of the prince from behind a minotaur.

"Looking for someone Su?" Lucy asked nudging Danielle.

The older girl froze and glanced at the two of them nervously. "What on earth are you talking about?"

"Oh, I don't know," Danielle said shrugging, "maybe that a certain someone has you acting like a love-struck school girl."

"I-I don't like Caspian." she stammered, her cheeks turning pink.

"Ha! We never said it was him!" Danielle said triumphantly high-fiving Lucy.

Susan's cheeks turned a deeper shade of pink. "Quiet down, will you!" she whispered harshly.

Lucy and Danielle continued to laugh, drawing amused looks from the Narnians around them, much to Susan's displeasure.

"No one can blame you Susan," Danielle said lowering her voice, "look at him!"

They huddled together and looked ahead at the front group where Peter and Caspian were talking.

"He's tall, has an amazing voice," she said slowly, her eyes gradually drifting from the side of Caspian's face to a pair of brown eyes near him.

Edmund continued to stare back at her with a hard look, ignoring whatever Peter and Caspian were saying beside him.

"Firm muscles, hair you could run your fingers through," she continued not breaking her gaze, "and dark, mysterious eyes that you can get lost in."

"Wow Danielle," Lucy said, "are you sure you're not the one who's in love with him."

Danielle blinked and looked away from Edmund. "Haha, Lucy, very funny."

She remained quiet for the rest of the trip, keeping her head low to avoid making eye contact with Edmund again. It made her feel anxious and uncomfortable.

Fifteen minutes later they finally came to a stop and Danielle looked up, gasping at the sight in front of them. In a big, empty field stood a large, rocky structure covered in foliage. It gave off a temple-like aura leaving her and the Pevensies speechless at the sight.

They began to slowly approach structure, and as they neared it Danielle noticed the Narnians trickling out from inside, eager expressions on their faces. They watched curiously as some centaurs lined up on either side of the entrance and pulled their swords out, bringing them down to create an arch.

Danielle and the Pevensies smiled warmly at the introduction, leaving the group and Caspian behind as they began to make their way inside the 'temple'.

The lighting dimmed significantly as they moved further into the structure, the only source of light coming from burning torches lining the stone walls. The rancid smell of hot steel filled their noses and they paused to look around at the room of Narnians creating new weapons.

"It may not be what you're used to," Caspian said approaching Peter and Edmund, "but it is defensible."

Susan suddenly appeared from one of the tunnels the girls had disappeared into. "Peter," she said catching their attention, "you may want to come see this."

Danielle brushed her fingers across the craving of herself at their coronation as the boys joined them, nostalgia filling her. It felt like just yesterday they had defeated the White Witch and saved Narnia.

"It's us…" she mumbled quietly.

"What is this place?" Lucy asked turning to Caspian.

Caspian's eyebrows creased. "You don't know?" he asked looking at them surprised.

Answered with blank stares and silence, he grabbed a torch from the wall and began to lead them further down the tunnel. They followed him through the twists and turns of the passageway, the darkness growing around them as entered a room.

Danielle shifted closer to the person next her, her heart rate increasing as uncertainty set it. She felt the person's fingers brush against her own, and she turned her head, barely able to make out the outline of Edmund's profile. He didn't turn to look at her, his dark eyes looking forward, and she remained where she was, feeling at ease.

Caspian moved further into the room and tipped his torch down. Slowly the room became more illuminated and all their eyes became focused on a carving of a lion.

Aslan.

Lucy moved forward and towards the stone structure in the middle of room, touching it lightly.

_The Stone Table_, Danielle realized. She hadn't been there when the White Witch killed Aslan—something she was glad to have missed—and had instead been preparing for the battle with Peter and Edmund down at camp.

"He must know what he's doing." Lucy rationalized quietly.

"I think it's up to us now." Peter voiced, his voice echoing.

Danielle felt something rough brush her hand again, and she looked up to see Edmund staring down at her. He frowned at her, finally noticing how close she was standing to him and walked away quickly, leaving her standing alone.

She sighed and glanced back at carving of Aslan. Just yesterday, he had been the one to hold her hand and today he was acting like she was some kind of disease.

_Moody bastard, _she thought rolling her eyes.

**-:|D&E|:-**

Later that night after dinner, Peter called for a meeting to be held, stating that it was best to start strategizing right away if they wanted to make any progress over the next few days. Caspian had suggested they wait till tomorrow, allow the Narnians to get some rest after their long day, but Peter ignored him as usual.

"It's only a matter of time," he said looking around at everyone. "Miraz's men and war machines are on their way. But that also means that those same men aren't protecting his castle."

"What do you propose we do, your Majesty?" Reepicheep, the brown mouse, asked.

"We need to start planning for…"

"We need to get ready for…"

Peter and Caspian paused, looking at each other with irritation. The prince swallowed, nodding his head and looking down as he broke under Peter's hard gaze.

"Our only hope is to strike them before they strike us." Peter explained.

"But that's crazy," Caspian spoke up again. "No one has ever taken that castle."

"There's always a first time." the king shot back.

Danielle sighed and closed her eyes. "Here they go again." she groaned to Lucy. "Are they ever going to learn to get along?"

"I think they're like another version of you and Edmund." the younger girl giggled.

Danielle frowned and shook her head. "Edmund and I are not this bad."

She glanced across the room and found him standing in a darker section of it, his hands stuffed in his pockets as he leaned against the wall, his body half covered by the shadows.

She smiled as he rolled his eyes, clearly annoyed with Peter as well, and ran a hand through his tousled hair, making it messier than it already was. She didn't want to admit it, but there was something about him at this very moment that had her stomach jumping around like crazy.

His dark eyes suddenly shifted towards her and he raised an eyebrow, a smirk tugging on his lips. She blushed and looked away quickly, embarrassed that he had caught her staring at him.

"Yes you are." Lucy said catching Danielle attention. "I would say you've gotten better over the past few years, but when you two really get into a serious argument it's horrible."

"Oh come on," Danielle protested, "it cannot be _that _bad."

Lucy turned to her and raised an eyebrow.

**-:|D&E|:-**

"_Edmund, could you be a dear a pass me the toast? It hurts to move my arm." Danielle moaned as she pouted across the table at him._

_He sighed and set his fork down, looking up at her. "It's right in front you, stop being so dramatic."_

_From the moment he had sat down at breakfast this morning he had heard nothing but Danielle's petty moans about how her arm was sore. Not to mention he had received an earful from both Peter and Susan about it the night before. _

_She was over exaggerating, and he was growing tired of her 'poor little me' act. _

"_I could have died, how can I not be dramatic?"_

_Edmund rolled his eyes. "It was your _**shoulder**, _not your neck." he retorted._

"_It still hurts." she grumbled stabbing her eggs._

_He didn't reply and they all assumed the conversation was over._

_That is until Danielle began to complain about how uncomfortable her stiches felt. _

_Edmund had had enough. "You know, maybe if you weren't so clumsy, you wouldn't be in so much pain." he hissed glaring at her. _

"_Maybe if you hadn't provoked me into a sword fight, I wouldn't be in pain." she replied calmly, a smirk playing on her lips._

_Edmund slammed his goblet down, his eyes ablaze. "Provoked you? You provoked me!" he said, his temper rising. "You're the one who kept telling me that Aslan had made a mistake in giving me the title of First Sword."_

"_Did I?" she asked, taking great pride in how easy it was for her to get him angry._

"_Edmund, sit down and shut up." Peter said finally stepping in. "You're eighteen, not eight. Start acting like it."_

"_She started it! Maybe if she didn't act like such a spoiled princess all the time we wouldn't have this problem."_

"_I am not a spoiled princess…I'm a spoiled _**queen**_."_

_This time Susan cut it. "Danielle, please," she pleaded. "Stop acting so childish and be a lady."_

"_Don't waste your time Su. Danielle doesn't have the mental capacity to act like a lady." Edmund said smirking._

_Danielle narrowed her eyes at him._

"_I wish you hadn't said that Ed." Lucy moaned as Danielle grabbed Edmund's goblet and tossed its contents at him._

_He breathed in sharply, wiping his eyes of orange juice before grabbing the jam jar and spilling it over her head._

"_You are so immature Edmund! Why can't you be a normal gentleman like Peter?" Danielle shouted as she marched out of the dining room, her hands curled into tight fists._

"_Why can't you be more polite like Susan or Lucy?" Edmund yelled back as he followed her out, clearly not done with their argument._

_They disappeared into the hallway, their voices bouncing off the wall as they continued to yell at each other._

_Peter, Susan, and Lucy looked at each other, sighing as put down their utensils and pushed their chairs back._

"_Will we ever have a quiet breakfast?" Susan asked tiredly._

"_No, it's impossible with those two around." Peter responded._

"_Come on," Lucy sighed. "We better go stop them before they physically hurt each other."_

**-:|D&E|:-**

"Alright," Danielle said ignoring the smirk on Lucy's face, "I see you point."

They fell silent, their attentions diverted by everyone around them suddenly throwing out their opinions on how to handle Miraz and his troops.

"If I can get your troops in, can you handle the guards?" Peter asked turning to a dark skinned centaur.

He remained quiet for a second, glancing at Caspian before replying with, "Or die trying, my liege."

Danielle frowned and sat up straighter. She wasn't sure she was comfortable with this. Risking innocent lives on a plan that had a 50/50 chance of working just seemed foolish.

Before she could voice this though, Lucy spoke up instead. "That's what I'm worried about."

"Sorry?" Peter asked narrowing his eyes at Lucy.

"You're all acting like there's only two options." she said staring back at him unfazed, "dying here, or drying there."

"I'm not sure you've been listening Lu—"

"No, _you're_ not listening." Lucy stated firmly surprising him. "Or have you forgotten who really defeated the White Witch, Peter?"

Peter's jaw clenched. "I think we've waited for Aslan long enough." he said leaving the room.

It was silent for a minute before everyone broke into their conversations, their voices quickly filling the room.

"Can you believe the way Peter's acting?" Susan asked as she and Edmund approached Danielle and Lucy at the Stone Table.

"This is all getting so out of hand." Lucy said sadly.

Danielle listened quietly as they continued to talk, trying to ignore the presence of someone next to her. She already knew who it was.

"Someone has wandering eyes today, don't they?" a voice breathed into her ear.

She resisted the urge to shiver and turned to frown at him. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Uh-huh, okay." he said smirking as he leaned next to her on the table.

They were quiet for a few minutes before Danielle broke the silence.

"Do you think we argue a lot?"

"What?" he asked furrowing his eyebrows.

"Do you think we argue a lot?" she repeated. "Lucy was comparing you and me to Peter and Caspian."

He snorted. "We are nothing like them."

"That's what I said!" she said smiling. At least someone agreed with her.

"Although," he began causing her smile to drop, "if we had to be compared you'd be like Peter: loud and domineering."

He snickered and walked away as she gaped at him.

"Don't walk away me!" she yelled hopping off the table. "I am not loud and domineering!"

She marched after him, ignoring the stares she was getting from the Narnians around them.

"Edmund, come back! I'm not done talking to you!"

* * *

**Well what do you think? Was it a good chapter? I know a majority of it is kinda of the movie, but without it, it would be too difficult for me to build a basis for the rest of my story.**

**Also, am I doing an okay job at portraying Edmund and Danielle's...'interest' in each other? Is it kinda of confusing, cause if it is than GOOD! It's supposed to be really confusing.**

**Anyway, I think I did a good job at updating. You didn't have to wait 3 and half months again did you, haha. :D**

**Thanks for reading and please type a review in that box down there, I'd appreciate it if you did. I even reply to all of them!**

**And who knows, I might update quicker. ;)**


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